SHORT STORY ELEMENTS AND TERMS

SHORT STORY ELEMENTS AND TERMS

WHAT IS A SHORT STORY? A short story is a brief work of fiction where the main character faces one central conflict that is worked out in the plot of the story. Examples- Goldilocks and the Three Bears Little Red Riding Hood The Little Engine That Could

CHARACTER A character is a person, or sometimes even an animal, who takes part in the action of a short story or other literary work. Major and minor Protagonist, antagonist

CHARACTERIZATION How the author develops the characters, especially the main character/protagonist. This is done through: what the character does or says what others say of and to the character author s word choice in descriptive passages

TYPES OF CHARACTERIZATION AND CHARACTERS Direct characterization The author directly states what the character s personality is like. Example: cruel, kind Indirect characterization Showing a character s personality through his/her actions, thoughts, feelings, words, appearance or other character s observations or reactions Characters in a story can be one of two types. They can be Static- they remain the same throughout the entire story or Dynamic- they change in some important way during the course of the story Also Round- a developed character (we get to know them) Flat- an undeveloped character (we never get to know them)

PROTAGONIST The protagonist is the main character that the story centers around. The character typically changes and grows because of the experiences they have in the story. Protagonist can sometimes include characters who might be, for example, villainous or weak (but characters that we are still interested in or concerned about regardless of their flaws in character).

ANTAGONIST The antagonist is a character who is opposed to, struggles against, or competes with the protagonist. It can be, but is not necessarily, human! Seven types of antagonists: 1) Character 2) Nature 3) Society 4) Self 5) Supernatural 6) Fate/Destiny 7) Machine

POINT OF VIEW This is the angle or position from which the story is told. Three types of point of view: First person- One of the characters is actually telling the story using the pronoun I Third person- Uses he and she but centers on one character s thoughts and actions. Omniscient- All knowing narrator. Can center on the thoughts and actions of any and all characters.

SETTING The where and when (time and place) the story takes place. Setting can be of great importance in establishing not only the physical background, but also in creating the atmosphere/ mood of the story (tension, suspense, peacefulness, etc.) Setting can include time (minute/hour, year, month, decade, etc.), weather (season, literal weather, etc.), places (planets, countries, cities, buildings, homes, stores, etc.) or any other thing that helps set the background.

THE PLOT Plot is the action or sequence of events in a literary work. It is a series of related events that build upon one another. Plot includes the following: what the characters do what the characters say what the characters think what happens to the characters what the characters cause to happen

EXPOSITION The exposition is the introduction of a story where we meet the main character(s) and the plot begins. Often it also presents the background information to help readers understand the situation of the story.

RISING ACTION This is the series of struggles (conflicts and complications) that builds a story toward its climax. The conflicts and complications within a story are what creates the rising action.

CONFLICT A conflict is the struggle between two opposing forces or characters in a story that triggers action. Conflict can be internal or external. In a short story, the story typically focuses around one major conflict, whereas in novels they feature multiple major conflicts throughout the story.

TYPES OF CONFLICT Internal Conflict = Man vs. Self This is the conflict that takes place within an individual (an inner battle of conscience) External Conflict:This is an individual s struggle against something outside of themselves. There are six basic types of external conflict 1) man vs. man (or group of people) 2) man vs. society 3) man vs. machine 4) man vs. nature/animal 5) man vs. supernatural 6) man vs. fate or destiny

CLIMAX This is the point of greatest intensity, interest, or suspense in a narrative which will somehow determine the outcome of the story. In drama, the climax is also identified with the terms crisis and/or turning point. It s the point of the story that changes everything.

FALLING ACTION This is the part of the story that shows the working out of the action that occurred during the story s climax. (Issues/ problems must be resolved (worked out) to reach a resolution).

RESOLUTION The resolution is the portion of the story where the problem is somehow resolved. It follows after the climax and falling action and is intended to bring the story to a satisfactory (not always!) ending.

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